SIR: Recently you discussed the proper use of "have" vs. "got." Isn't using "I've got" a version of I have got, therefore using "have" with "got"? - Naomi P.
ANSWER: It is, of course, but there are many times when "I've got" sounds perfectly all right, whereas "I have got" would sound forced. An example I've given before is "I've got you under my skin."Strangely enough, readers complain often and angrily about use of "have got." It may be trite, and sometimes it's redundant, but it's not incorrect - and it often serves a real purpose, especially for emphasis. "I have got to go" certainly conveys more emphasis than "I have to go," doesn't it?
SIR: I write concerning the controversy over "to rear" or "to raise" (American English). Each sounds awkward to me, because I was "brought up" in England. - Joan N.
ANSWER: Yes, we Americans are funny about those words. Today it is considered correct to speak of being either "raised" or "reared," though the latter word is considered artificial by many. A generation or so ago, many purists exploded with wrath at the thought of being "raised." Fortunately, we're mostly past that point.
Still, anyone who wishes to follow your English example is in good company; many of us prefer to say we were "brought up." The main thing, I suppose, is that, one way or another, we're here.
SIR: Our newspaper had an item about a large city faced with suburban growth. It said the city was installing a new sewer system to solve the problem of the increased "affluent." Would you say their demise is "eminent"? I had to get this off my chest. - Donna B.
ANSWER: That's lovely. For any sleepy readers, the first word should have been "effluent" and the second "imminent." Three cheers for a hit by Donna.
SAD ADMISSION, tongue-in-cheek variety, by Alfred R.:
I read that an outfit founded in the 18th century "produced iron for cannon and other household appliances such as stoves." I have come in contact with most household appliances in my 78 years but never a cannon in the kitchen.